The present invention relates to location-based services and, more specifically, methods and systems for selecting content for outputting on a mobile device receiving in an Internet television stream using mobile device location information.
Many television stations deliver live or prerecorded video programming via the Internet. Such video programming includes video content and related audio content. Some Internet television streams are simulcasts of television broadcasts transmitted by conventional over-the-air terrestrial, cable or satellite television stations. Other Internet television streams originate from Internet-only sources.
Internet television streams are sometimes comprised of television programs of specified durations. For example, an Internet television stream may have a half-hour news program followed by an hour talk show program followed by a half-hour drama or comedy program. Each of these video programs will normally include program breaks during which content that is distinct from the program content is delivered. For example, a program may be interrupted by program breaks during which advertisements, station identification messages or other content are outputted.
The content outputted during Internet television program breaks is often outputted to all viewers without regard to where they are viewing. This content may be of limited value to many viewers, advertisers and broadcasters because it addresses topics that are not sufficiently local or otherwise relevant to these entities. Moreover, such indiscriminate outputting limits the pool of businesses that can afford to purchase Internet television ad spots. For example, many neighborhood businesses that market to a local customer base cannot afford to pay for an advertisement outputted to the entire viewership of an Internet television program, and also cannot afford to pay for traditional over-the-air television advertising.
To address the foregoing concerns, it has been proposed to select content for outputting on mobile devices during Internet television program breaks based on the location of the mobile devices. However, these proposals have not provided meaningful guidance on how to perform real-time content selection using mobile device location information required for seamless Internet television. Moreover, these proposals have neglected other value-added approaches, such as selecting content based on a mobile device's trajectory as opposed to its mere location and exploiting cohabitation opportunities wherein location-relevant content can share a display screen with program content.